Director says Housing Trust Fund grew to $800 million; board urged to supply data to new department

The Clallam County Housing Authority’s director briefed the board on state legislative developments and urged local housing authorities to provide practical data to the governor’s new Department of Housing committee.

"The Housing Trust Fund, received an additional 200,000,000 in the 2026, legislative session for a total of 800,000,000 in the biannual investment into the Housing Trust Fund, which is the largest of all time," Director Heidi Greenwood said, summarizing the Association of Washington Housing Authorities’ legislative update.

Greenwood said the governor’s committee, appointed by executive order to advise on a Department of Housing, remains divided about its purpose and whether it should focus exclusively on affordable housing. "This group of people who have all been appointed to this committee are completely divided on what this committee should do and how they should do it," she said, and noted the committee has until Nov. 15 to report back to the governor’s office.

Board members discussed how 'affordable' should be defined for funding decisions. Greenwood explained that income and rent limits for publicly funded programs are published and updated annually, most commonly using HUD methodology. "Is that up to a 120% of AMI? Because low income housing is 80% of AMI," one board member asked; Greenwood said programs typically tie limits to their funder’s formula.

The director warned that some building and energy-code requirements may be driving up construction costs and suggested the committee should assess regulatory burdens and return data to the governor. She gave a concrete example of administrative burden: an energy grant application that required many hours of staff work for a small award.

Board members agreed to track and provide examples of regulatory and administrative burdens to inform the committee’s deliberations.